A new video series aims to equip Beaver County residents with the tools they need to better advocate for safe, clean water.
Sustainable community development group RiverWise will release “Understanding Your Water” in the coming days to help residents better protect their municipal or private drinking water.
The series of seven short videos was created in partnership with Geneva College chemistry professor Rodney Austin.
A teacher of more than two decades, Austin has tested water samples from rivers and streams for 15 years. The professor will explain what safe drinking water looks like and how to hold municipalities accountable for maintaining healthy tap water.
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“The water supply from the Beaver River is a tremendous resource to those of us in western Pennsylvania,” Austin said. “Many other parts of our country do not have such a source of water.”
As a chemistry professor, Austin said he’s heavily researched tap water issues. He developed a course devoted to water issues and serves on the Beaver Falls Municipal Authority board. These interests have evolved into an initiative to create educational materials to help the general public understand public water quality reports, he said.
“Even with reasonably good drinking water, consumers need to be knowledgeable regarding their water, and the Consumer Confidence Report (CCR) is handy,” Austin said. “The CCR provides a basic set of parameters to evaluate one’s water.”
One video will be released each day beginning Oct. 16 on RiverWise’s social media pages (@getriverwise.)
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At 7 p.m Oct. 25, RiverWise and Austin will host a virtual follow-up discussion to highlight the series’ key points and offer “practical tools residents can take with them to help them become champions for water quality,” RiverWise representatives said in a statement. That event is free, but registration is required at www.eventbrite.com/e/riverwise-understanding-your-water-tickets-435775495237.
“Residents all around Beaver County are becoming increasingly committed to community health,” said Daniel Rossi-Keen, executive director of RiverWise. “We are hearing a growing interest in accessible community education that can empower residents to become better advocates for issues facing the community.”
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